Take me home
by Ellemay
Summary: Lottie hates her life, she always has. Her mothers dead though she doesn't really care, her dads new girlfriend seems intent on destroying her life and she has had to move schools, AGIAN. She meets two very different guys, which, if any, will save her?


_Charlotte Marie Rose, what a pretentious name! _Lottie thought to herself as she leaned back into the BMW's plush seats, _like everything else about me. Argh I hate this stupid car, _she fumed silently to herself, _and I hate moving around all the bloody time! _She sighed and turned to look out the window, hazy green fields flew past her, _not my usual scene _she thought with another sigh. She was on her way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry or at least, the train station, with her parents. Or should I say parent?

"I don't see why we couldn't drop you straight there, honey, trains are so common these days!" her dads girlfriend, Hillary, sighed, pouting beautifully at her wayward 'step'daughter.

"Your mothers right, Charlotte, who do you insist on being so stubborn?" Her dad, Charlie, abolished.

"Er, mother?" Lottie spluttered, a frown creasing the skin on her forehead as she contemplated the back of her fathers' head. _Is he trying to tell me something? _she wondered to herself, _I bloody hope he's not!_

"Pardon?"

"Oh I simply said Lottie father, call me Lottie," she said brightly, fixing her smile back into its place. Hillary frowned disapprovingly and fixed Lottie with a pursed glare. "Your father called you Charlotte for a reason, so he could call you it. Not this ugly, common and vulgar Lottie!"

"I will call myself whatever I want!" she snapped back, irritated as she slid out of the parked car.

"Charlotte!" he dad warned, "remember you manners!" Lottie almost screamed with frustration, she was jet lagged, cold and had been stuck in the car for hours with her miserable excuse for a father and bimbo of a woman. She just couldn't, no scratch that, wouldn't, take any more of this shit! "No dad, remember your daughters name! IT'S LOTTIE!" she yelled, whilst pulling her massive trunk out of the boot, "REMEMBER? LOTTIE!"

"Charlotte stop being so spoilt and ungrateful!! Come back here this minute, Charlotte! I SAID NOW, CHARLOTTE!" Hillary yelled, her soft blonde hair falling down from its elegant bun as she faced down her 'step'child.

"AND AS I SAID EARLIER, YOU'RE NOT MY MOTHER! YOU DON'T HAVE ANY RIGHT TO COME INTO MY LIFE AND BOSS ME AROUND LIKE I'M SOME SORT OF SERVANT, A LESSER BEING! SO WHY DON'T YOU PACK UP AND GO BACK HOME TO YOUR MUMMY AND DADDY, YOU STUCK-UP, STPUID GOLDDIGGER!" Lottie screamed back, her face turning a slight shade of pink as she let her emotions fly off her sharp tongue.

Hillary took a deep breath as though preparing to take a plunge and leaned forwards, slapped Lottie hard across her face who stumbled backwards, shocked. "That's what you get for insulting me, you spoilt brat! I am worth ten times of you and even your precious father knows it! I love your father, though that seems impossible for you to believe, and he loves me! SO GET USED TO IT, BECAUSE I'M HERE TO STAY!"

"LOVE?" Lottie screeched back, "YOU CALL THAT LOVE?!" she laughed derisively, flicking back her black hair and exposing her livid face. "I'M HIS DAUGHTER, FREAK, AND HE WILL ALWAYS CHOOSE ME OVER YOU! SO GET USED TO IT!" Silence welcomed that statement and slowly Hillary begun to laugh, the sound echoing mockingly across the station. She begun walking past Lottie with Charlie in tow when she leaned closer and softly whispered in her ear, "you won't be thinking _that _for much longer, sweetie," and with that, they were gone.

Lottie stood frozen for a second, as she looked back towards where her father had been standing only a moment ago. _Where's my goodbye? _She wondered sadly. Sighing, her anger magically disappearing, she picked up her trunk and began walking determinedly towards the nearest train, turning the corner as she realised it wasn't the right one.

With a cry she fell backwards onto her ass as she crashed into some guy going the opposite way. She winced, muttered a quick apology and tried to stand up all at the same time. Obviously Lottie was never meant to multitask because once more she found herself on her ass, blushing furiously up at the cute guy standing above her. He gave her an easy smile and offered his hand, grinning as he effortlessly pulled her up and, grinning even wider, 'accidentally' into his arms.

"Thanks," she said awkwardly as they separated, she smiled and quickly looked around. When she looked back he'd gone. "Oh," she said shocked, before realising she only had 10 minutes to find her train and he was banished from her mind. She began looking for her platform, which, she realised, should be somewhere between platform 9 and 10. _But theres nothing here! _she thought wildly, _no platform 9 and three quarters! Oh Merlin, what if I don't find it on time? Theres no way I'm going back her home with my dad and HER! Buggerations!_ she thought as she looked left and right desperately.

Realising she said this thought out loud as well she ducked her head and began issuing a loud and embarrassing apology. "Sorry," she said, her smile becoming strained as another old couple backed away from her, "very sorry. Didn't mean to say it out loud, just a thought…you know!" Apparently they didn't know and hurried towards a nearby train master, casting Lottie scandalised looks. She sighed and began walking backwards, pulling her trunk along with her as she tried to evade the glare of the train master.

_God, now I'm going to get chucked out! _she thought somewhat erratically as she stumbled away. "Damn!" she hissed as she collided with another person, _it was bound to happen really, _she thought, _after all I was walking backwards! _She turned around and was just about to apologise when the person pulled her sideways, through what she assumed was a door.

"Sorry," he said, grinning shiftily as she gave him a surprised look, "that train master was after you wasn't he? This is the only place he won't look, so you're fine here."

"Oh ok, thanks," she said smiling, still a little uncomfortable with the situation. "Hey, you don't happen to know where platform 9 and three quarters is, do you?" she asked hopefully.

He grinned and laughed at her words and gestured to the air around them. "You're there, here, on platform nine and three quarters!" he said with a grin and held out his hand, "hi. I'm Harry Potter." She gasped with recognition at the name and her eyes travelled up his forehead, to where the lightning shaped scar lay under his black hair.

"Sorry," she muttered again when she realised she'd been gawking. "My names Lottie Rose, pleasure to meet you," whilst shaking his proffered hand. He raised an eyebrow, "nice name, quite a well known one yourself." She scowled and crossed her arms over her chest, "no, it's my mothers name that is well known. I'm just a sort of after thought." He shrugged and pointed at her trunk, "need a hand?"

She smiled back, "sure." They struggled with the awkward shape, eventually managing to shove it into a spare compartment after several failed attempts. Lottie sank down onto a seat, rubbing her sore arms as she stared at the trunk hanging above her head. "Why the hell does it have to go on the ceiling?" she sighed, exhausted.

"Good question," Harry said with laughter in his voice, "ask Hermione. She always knows everything about anything."

Lottie looked up questioningly, "whose Hermione?" Just then the compartment doors burst open and several people tumbled in. A lot of red headed people stood before Lottie, staring at her as though she was something from another planet. A pretty brown haired girl had entered after them and suddenly let out a rather girlish squeal. "Oh, you must be Charlotte Rose! Professor Mcgonnagal told me all about you! I'm supposed to show you around the castle when we arrive, although after the feast of course," the girl finished sombrely.

Feeling a little overwhelmed, Lottie leaned around the girl to look at Harry who was grinning. She turned her gaze back on the girl and said mock solemnly, "you must be Hermione," smiling as the girl let out another "oh" and Harry laughed again.

* * *

"So, why the hell did you come here?" Ron asked again out of the blue. Lottie sighed, _how many times will I have to say this? _

"I think Lottie's explained it as much as possible," Harry intervened quickly seeing her tight expression.

"But-"

"But nothing Ronald!" scolded Hermione, "honestly, some people have no empathy. It must've been awful for you," she continued, reaching across the compartment to touch Lottie's arm, in what Lottie supposed was meant to be a comforting way.

"Well, not really! I mean I didn't really like the school anyway, it was full of stuck up prats who thought they owned the world."

"Sounds quite like some people here," Harry glowered quietly to himself.

"But what about your friends?" Hermione asked surprised.

"I didn't have many friends," Lottie said uncomfortably, "because I didn't fit in that well. I wasn't as rich or dominant in society, you see."

"But," Ron interrupted swiftly, "you're a Rose! You're pretty famous in the wizarding world."

"Yeah but not on the scale of the kids there, most of them were royal! And like I said before, it was my mother that was famous, not me!"

There was a silence after her outburst and Lottie began to blush again. _They all probably think I'm a spoilt brat, just like my dear 'mother' said._

"Sorry, I'm just tired I guess," she sighed sadly, brushing back her hair. "Is it ok if I lie down? I haven't slept for ages." The others nodded silently and she carefully laid her head down on the plush seats, welcoming sleeps dark release.

While Lottie slept the others discussed her softly in the corner. "So Hermione," Ron said leaning backwards on his seat, "give us the goss."

"What do you mean, give us the goss?" scoffed Hermione incredulously.

"You know! The dirt, rumours, secrets, ta-"

"I think you should stop there, Ron," advised Harry.

"Why?" he asked pedantically. Harry nodded towards Hermione and Ron swallowed his words as she was looking furious.

"Why are you asking me? Even if I knew something nasty about her I wouldn't tell you! What do you take me for?!" she snapped at him.

He smiled patronisingly and slung an arm around her shoulder, "It's ok Hermione, if you don't know anything about her you don't have to cover it up!"

Hermione growled something under her breath and pulled herself away from him, pulling out a heavy looking book and immersing herself in it.

"What's with her?" Ron mouthed to Harry who just shook his head, laughing helplessly at the pair of them. _Like an old couple, _he thought fondly to himself.

* * *

Sometime later the compartment door was forced open and four imposing figures stood looking in.

"Well, well, well," sneered Draco, leaning casually against the door frame, "look who we have here." Crab and Goyle sniggered stupidly behind him, cracking their knuckles in a dopey sort of way while Blaise watched silently. Draco's eyes travelled around the room until they fell onto a slumbering Lottie and stopped, surprised. "The girl who walked into me," he said, unintentionally, out loud.

"What?" asked Harry, slightly affronted by the lack of insults coming his way.

"Nothing Potter," Draco snarled back quickly, "just wondering who your new slut is."

"Excuse me," came a voice from down next to their knees, "but I am not a slut!" Lottie cried, sitting up looking indignant. She caught sight of who was insulting her and looked confused, "you?" she asked.

"Oh er, hi," he muttered shamefacedly, looking very sheepish.

"Huh?" Harry muttered. _What's going on? Why does Draco look sorry?_

"For your information," Lottie snapped, regaining her composure, "I am a new girl from The Royal Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry, called Charlotte Rose and I am 16 years old. Did you hear slut in that sentence? No and that sentence practically explained my whole life, got that?"

"Yeah, except the fact that your dad is marrying some blonde golddigger half his age only a few months after your mum mysteriously died." Draco replied, spitefully.

"Don't you think I've figured that out for myself?" Lottie hissed back her eyes flashing as she recalled her own words from earlier that day.

"I don't know, if your half as stupid as you look-"

"Leave her alone!" Hermione cried suddenly, her wand pointing straight at Draco's nose.

"Yeah Draco, leave her be," agreed Blaise, to everyone's evident surprise.

"What?" Draco snapped angrily.

"Me and my family, we were good friends of Mrs. Rose. So leave her alone, ok?"

Draco obviously respected Blaise enough to relent because next he turned to Harry, snarling something about his parents. Harry didn't hear him, he was too busy watching Lottie. She was staring out the train window slowly running her tongue across her lips again and again. _Such soft red lips_, he thought to himself. Then he noticed the over-brightness of her eyes and the way they seemed about to spill over their lids.

The sharp grey-green colour stood out prominently against her pale skin, swirling slightly as she took a quiet steadying breath and closed them momentarily.

She sighed as reopened them, nothing had changed. That horrible guy was still snapping and snarling, Hermione was still threatening him, Ron looked half asleep and Harry...Harry was staring empathetically at her. She blushed as he straightened and looked away, embarrassed at being caught.

She suddenly hiccuped and everyone turned towards her. "Sorry," she whispered as a tear fell smoothly down her cheek, "sorry." Harry walked quickly over and hugged her, "what have you got to be sorry for, you old silly," he muttered into her hair.

She hiccuped again and weakly laughed. How weird the situation was! She didn't really know the guy giving her a hug, the guy insulting her, the girl defending her, the boy staring at her sleepily or the mysterious guy who claimed to know, have known, her mother.

Draco watched uncomfortably as Lottie was comforted by Harry, not really knowing why her had been so spiteful to her. _I don't even know her! _He thought to himself, _plus she's a famous pure blood, I don't really see the problem with her. Except Harry,_ a little voice reminded him in his head. He turned to leave when Blaise stepped forwards and gently took Lottie's hand in his own. "I'm sorry about your mum, she was an amazing person," he said gently.

"Yes," agreed Lottie wiping away her tears, "she was." _So fucking great, _she thought bitterly, _so fucking brilliantly amazing_.


End file.
